People in the early Tang Dynasty: I compete with Wu Zhao for the throne

Chapter 1734: The Burning of Lingyan Pavilion, an Ominous Sign
In the government hall, all the ministers of the court were present.

Lu Yuanfang glared at Li Xuan and said, "Prince Peng's words are wrong. It's not Emperor Suzong, it's Prince Yong."

"Yes!" Li Xuan quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "It's Xuanzhi's fault, it's Prince Yong."

Lu Yuanfang turned to look at Ouyang Tong and asked, "Minister Ouyang, is the edict from Prince Yong real or fake?"

"It's fake." Ouyang Tong threw Li Chongzhao's handwritten edict on the table, then looked at Lu Yuanfang and said, "It's a replica of the same handwriting as Princess Taiping's."

"So, it's the princess who is colluding with the Silla people." Lu Yuanfang narrowed his eyes slightly and turned to look at Li Xuan: "Prince Peng, how is the arrest of Princess Taiping going?"

"The princess is not in Chang'an or Luoyang. Qianling has made many efforts, but still failed to lure her out. Perhaps..." Li Xuan looked at Lu Yuanfang and said, "Perhaps the princess is no longer in Yongluo, but has gone to Hebei."

"She's going to help the Silla people invade the border?" Lu Yuanfang's face suddenly turned fierce.

"In any case, someone needs to go to Hebei to stabilize the area and at the same time guard against Silla sending troops. Once Silla sends troops, Hebei can quickly send troops to support." Li Xuan turned and looked at the prime ministers in the court with a serious expression.

"Who will go?" Liu Jingxian spoke rarely.

"I will go." Li Xuan sighed and said, "I did not handle the matter of Princess Taiping properly. Now she is causing trouble again. It is also my fault... Silla has always been ambitious. Now Silla is uneasy. If Silla moves, I can suppress it at will."

Lu Yuanfang wanted to say something, but Li Xuan turned around, looked at him, and shook his head slightly.

Lu Yuanfang sighed softly in his heart and nodded faintly.

……

In Ganlu Palace, Zheng was lying in Li Xuan's arms and asked in a low voice: "Is Uncle Wang really going to Hebei?"

Li Xuan reached out and gently stroked the smooth curve of Zheng's waist, and said softly: "Chang'an Luoyang, you haven't heard the recent rumors, right? There are too many people who want to make this king move, so that they can destroy this king in one fell swoop."

Zheng's body stiffened slightly, then softened in an instant. She leaned into Li Xuan's arms and asked in a low voice, "Uncle Wang, are you saying that someone wants to overthrow Uncle Wang first and then destroy Jun'er?"

"Jun'er is sick at the wrong time." Li Xuan sighed lightly. Even Li Xuan found Li Chongjun's illness very tricky for a moment.

Zheng lowered her head and asked with a firm gaze, "Uncle Wang, who do you think wants to attack Jun'er?"

"You know, the Silla people colluded with Princess Taiping and tried to disrupt Hebei, but there are still people in the court who cooperate with them, and they are not afraid of ending up like King Dai." Li Xuan couldn't help but sneer.

"The Dou family." Zheng's face was gloomy.

Yes, it’s the Dou family.

Indeed, according to popular opinion, Li Xuan controls a large army and is also a minister of state, so he can make further progress at any time.

But Zheng asked himself, since the recovery of Luoyang, Li Xuan had never done anything excessive, and it was others who took advantage of his fear and wanted to seize power.

Especially now, the government and the public are buzzing with discussions, but at this time, Li Xuan chose to go far away to Hebei and let the rumors dissipate automatically.

If this kind of thought is not loyalty, then what is loyalty?

Li Xuan hugged Zheng into his arms, and then whispered: "After I leave, you can often see Li Xiang. He is half a royal family member, and he also has Wang Shangshu of the Ministry of War. The two of them can control the army. Other political affairs can be left to Lu Xiang and others. Your Majesty is too young, there is no need for you to be involved in these things."

"What about Jun'er's illness?" Zheng hugged Li Xuan with both arms and said worriedly, "I have tried it in the harem. Once there are more than ten people, Jun'er will cry uncontrollably. No one can help. Once there are fewer people, he will stop crying immediately. If it continues like this for a long time, how can he govern the country without entering the court?"

Li Xuan fell silent, sighed and said, "I don't have any way to cure the emperor's illness, but I have a folk remedy."

"Hmm?" Zheng looked up at Li Xuan with expectation.

Li Xuan sighed and said, "In addition to meeting with the prime ministers of the three provinces every day, you can also summon officials of the fifth rank and above from any of the six ministries. Except for the prime minister, the six ministries and nine temples will be summoned to take office every day. Every half a month, they will be summoned in turn. There is no need to say much, just let them know that the emperor is fine."

Zheng's eyes suddenly opened wide, and she sat up directly on the bed with her beautiful body, showing itself to Li Xuan without reservation.

She had never thought that there was such a way.

Li Xuan hugged Zheng again and whispered, "In the morning, summon the officials from the six ministries and nine temples, and in the afternoon summon the families of the nobles, as well as the children of the same age. Play with them more, and the emperor will be fine after a while."

"Yeah!" Zheng kept nodding her head, like a chick pecking at corn.

What Li Xuan proposed are all practical uses that can greatly soothe people's hearts.

This made Zheng doubt the rumors in Chang'an and Luoyang cities.

Could it be that those things really have nothing to do with Li Xuan?

"This time when I go to Hebei, I will lead 10,000 left and right guards first, then when we get to Luoyang, I will mobilize other forces and finally go straight to Youzhou to report to Silla. If they really dare to cross the border, I will directly attack Andong, and then the two countries will go to war."

Li Xuan hugged Zheng slightly and said softly, "You have to be careful. If there is any unrest in Chang'an, ask your father to keep an eye on it. If there is any trouble, send Qianniu Guards to deliver a message 600 miles away. I will be back in the shortest possible time. Remember not to move."

"Shouldn't the Dou family move rashly?" Zheng was still thinking about the threats from Li Chengqi and the Dou family.

"It's useless to move." Li Xuan sighed and said, "Zhongjun and Chengqi are the only two grandsons left by Emperor Gaozong. Apart from them, there is no one else."

"Yes!" Zheng lowered her head and agreed readily.

……

Tens of thousands of cavalrymen in black clothes and armor rushed out of the north gate of the Daming Palace, avoiding the sight of all the people in Chang'an City and quickly headed towards Luoyang City.

But even so, the vast majority of people in Chang'an City received the news in the shortest time possible.

Rumors such as "Prince Peng was forced to leave Chang'an" and "The emperor was afraid of Prince Peng's excessive power" quickly spread throughout Chang'an and became a hot topic in a very short time.

At this time, Yongzhou Prefecture decisively dispatched a large number of constables to go out into the streets to arrest people.

Many people who hid in the crowd and spread rumors were arrested and sent to the Yongzhou Prefecture Prison.

In Ganlu Palace, Zheng Xuankai bowed to Zheng and said, "Reporting to the Queen Mother, those people have been arrested, and the person behind them has also been found."

"Whose people?" Zheng leaned forward with a stern expression.

"It's someone from the Wei family." Zheng Xuankai showed a trace of confusion on his face. He couldn't figure out why the person who showed up last was actually someone from the Wei family.

Zheng was stunned for a moment, then immediately sneered, "It's just a pawn pushed out by others. Maybe someone from the Dou family is behind it. Father, continue investigating."

"Yes!" Zheng Xuankai bowed solemnly and said, "Yes!"

Light footsteps sounded from behind. Xu Lu stood at the door of the inner hall and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, the Minister of Personnel Yun Hongyin, the Vice Minister of Personnel Zhao Xuan, the Vice Minister of Personnel Cui Shenji, the Doctor of Personnel Liu Tingqi, the Doctor of Personnel Xu Song, the Doctor of Personnel... and others have been ordered to see Your Majesty."

Zheng breathed a sigh of relief, looked at Zheng Xuankai and said, "Father, please go back first. I will take the emperor to meet the officials of the Ministry of Personnel." "Yes!" Zheng Xuankai bowed, then turned and walked out of the hall.

Outside the Ganlu Palace, Zheng Xuankai saw the Minister of Personnel Yun Hongyin and others, and was the first to bow and say, "Greetings to the Heavenly Official."

"Greetings, Duke of Xingyang." Yun Hongyin bowed seriously without any deviation from the etiquette.

"Greetings, Duke of Xingyang." The officials behind him also saluted at the same time.

Zheng Xuankai forced a smile, then stepped back and said, "The Queen Mother and the Emperor are already in the palace, please come in."

"Yes!" Everyone bowed together and then walked towards the hall.

Zheng Xuankai was standing outside the hall. He could clearly hear the sound of people bowing to the emperor, but the emperor unexpectedly did not cry.

Zheng Xuankai couldn't help but frowned: "Could it be that Prince Peng really has no further plans? Could it be that the ones stirring up trouble in Chang'an and Luoyang are really Princess Taiping and the Dou family?"

……

The sound of orderly footsteps came out from the Ganlu Gate. There was silence on both sides of the Liangyi Hall, and only bursts of noise came from the Taiji Hall in front.

That was the sound of the Tai Chi Hall being renovated.

"Actually, it's not bad now. At least we can see Your Majesty twice a month, which is no different from the grand court." Liu Tingqi, a doctor in the Ministry of Personnel, said calmly.

Everyone's footsteps slowed down involuntarily, and for a moment they didn't know what to say.

Yesterday, the Empress Dowager's imperial decree came from the Council of State Affairs, and the Empress Dowager and the Emperor summoned officials of the fifth rank and above in the Ministry of Personnel to the Ganlu Palace.

Later, I heard that the Ministry of Works, Ministry of Revenue, Ministry of Rites, Ministry of War, and Ministry of Justice had all reported on their requests for an audience with the Emperor.

Although the dates are different, the six ministries and nine temples take turns to see it twice a month, which is no different from the grand court.

Many people breathed a sigh of relief.

"Maybe." Cui Shenji said calmly, "In the short term, this is acceptable, but as time goes on, the Queen Mother will become more and more familiar with the affairs of the Ministry of Personnel. In the end, it is inevitable that the Queen Mother will intervene in the Ministry of Personnel. She can even bypass the Political Affairs Hall through the six ministries and nine temples."

After Cui Shenji finished speaking, everyone's faces changed slightly, and then became gloomy.

"Everyone, Cui will go ahead first." Cui Shenji bowed slightly, then strode forward with big strides.

When Cui Shenji completely disappeared from his sight, Yun Hongyin spoke calmly: "Everyone, these things have nothing to do with us. Just keep your mouth shut about the Ministry of Personnel's affairs."

"Here!" Everyone raised their hands in unison.

……

At the beginning of the You hour, Lu Yuan walked slowly in the West Market. The merchants passing by would greet him first when they saw him.

Lu Yuan nodded gently in return.

In the past few days, Chang'an City has gradually calmed down.

Lu Yuan also gradually took control of the entire West Market, and the remaining power of the Wei family in West Market was completely driven out by Lu Yuan.

This is actually not bad.

Lu Yuan raised his head and looked towards Luoyang. After a little thought, he calculated the time and thought that King Peng should have arrived in Luoyang by now.

For some unknown reason, Prince Peng never had any contact with the princess.

Lu Yuan shook his head and walked forward.

Suddenly, a thick smoke appeared in the distance of Lu Yuan's sight.

Northeast, towards the imperial palace.

Lu Yuan couldn't help but stop and looked towards the direction of the palace in shock. Why was there a fire in the palace?
Half an hour later, Lu Yuan saw Lu Zangyong coming out of the palace.

The first thing Lu Zangyong said was, "The Lingyan Pavilion has been burned down."

……

On September 15th, the autumn wind is getting colder.

At the Liangyi Gate, all the ministers stood in solemn silence.

No one spoke, but the suppressed anger had already burst through the sky.

Many people's eyes fell directly on General Qin Shandao of the Left Jinwu Guard, General Li Rong of the Imperial Guard and General Li Xiaoyi of the Imperial Guard.

The Lingyan Pavilion is guarded jointly by the Jinwu Guards and the Imperial Guards. If anything happens, the three of them cannot escape responsibility.

But many people cannot bring themselves to rebuke them.

Qin Shandao's father Qin Qiong and Li Rong's grandfather Li Xiaogong both painted the Lingyan Pavilion. When the Lingyan Pavilion caught fire this time, they themselves suffered losses.

The only one who has no connection with Lingyan Pavilion is Li Xiaoyi, but his father is Li Shentong.

Three men stood among the generals with pale faces and terrified expressions.

At this moment, with a "creak", the Liangyi Gate opened.

Xu Lu walked out of the palace calmly and said loudly: "The emperor is uneasy, the court is suspended, and the minister of the left Lu Yuanfang, the minister of the central government Li Yiyan, the minister of the imperial court Zhang Da'an, the prince of Huo Li Yuangui, the minister of the imperial court Wei Shuyu, the general of the left Jinwu Guard Qin Shandao, the general of the imperial guard Li Rong, and the general of the right Jianmen Guard Cheng Chuzheng are summoned to the audience."

"We obey your orders!" Several people walked out from among the ministers, then solemnly accepted the order and walked into the Liangyi Gate.

Lu Yuanfang has some relationship with Yu Shinan, Zhang Da'an is the son of Zhang Gongjin, Wei Shuyu is the second son of Wei Zheng, Li Yuangui is the son-in-law of Wei Zheng, Qin Shandao is the son of Qin Qiong, Li Rong is the grandson of Li Xiaogong, and Cheng Chuzheng is the son of Cheng Zhijie.

These are all closely related to Lingyan Pavilion.

The burning of the Lingyan Pavilion attracted great attention from both the government and the public. If it could be handled properly, there would be no trouble in the world. If it could not be handled properly, the people's hearts would inevitably be shaken.

Lu Zangyong stood at the end of the ministers with a solemn expression.

As soon as Prince Peng left the capital, the Lingyan Pavilion was burned down.

This is an ominous sign!
(End of this chapter)